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Disguised as Clark Kent : Jews, comics, and the creation of the superhero

"Jewish identity is historically about the push and pull toward and away from that very identity. As immigrants with a history of persecution, Jews came to America with their heads down but their eyes open, finding themselves presented with unprecedented freedom and opportunity." "Still, there were limits, spoken and unspoken, which often pushed Jews into fields with a hint of "second-class-ness" to them. Among these was the comic-book industry, until then minus the breakout hit that would put the medium on the map. That phenomenon would be the superhero - specifically Superman - and the flood of others that followed, including Batman and Spider-Man." "In Disguised as Clark Kent, Danny Fingeroth explores how the creators' Jewish backgrounds helped make superheroes the most familiar popular-culture icons of all, far beyond the comic books that spawned them - on TV, in movies, in electronic media - and in our very ideas about what it means to be a hero."--Jacket.Read more...

Foreword --
Stan Lee --
Introduction --
My Country 'tis of Me --
Coming to Terms --
What's So Jewish About Superheroes, Anyway? --
Superhero Genesis --
Who He Is and How He Came to Be --
A Stranger among Us --
The Birth of Superman --
A Great Multitude --
Batman and Beyond --
Doctor of Doom --
Frederic Wertham's Superhero Complex --
Rebuilding the Temple --
The Silver Age of Comics --
Why Are These Heroes Different? --
The Marvel Revolution --
Love Thy Neighbor as Thyself --
The X-Men and the '70s --
As a Matter of Fact, I Am Jewish --
The Modern Age --
Unto the Next Generation --
The Jewish Superhero Future --
Bibliography --
Index.

Abstract:

A large number of the creators of the famous superheroes were of Jewish background, secular, religious, or both. This book explores how the Jewish consciousness of these individuals impacted the content of the comics and contributed to making characters such as Superman, Batman, Spider-Man, and Wonder Woman into the popular-culture icons.Read more...

Reviews

Editorial reviews

Publisher Synopsis

"A very thoughtful, very smart, very readable exploration of its subject.It is an essential book for any serious student of comics history and a darn swell read to boot."-Tony Isabella, Comics Buyer's Guide--Sanford LakoffRead more...

"Foreword -- Stan Lee -- Introduction -- My Country 'tis of Me -- Coming to Terms -- What's So Jewish About Superheroes, Anyway? -- Superhero Genesis -- Who He Is and How He Came to Be -- A Stranger among Us -- The Birth of Superman -- A Great Multitude -- Batman and Beyond -- Doctor of Doom -- Frederic Wertham's Superhero Complex -- Rebuilding the Temple -- The Silver Age of Comics -- Why Are These Heroes Different? -- The Marvel Revolution -- Love Thy Neighbor as Thyself -- The X-Men and the '70s -- As a Matter of Fact, I Am Jewish -- The Modern Age -- Unto the Next Generation -- The Jewish Superhero Future -- Bibliography -- Index."@en

""Jewish identity is historically about the push and pull toward and away from that very identity. As immigrants with a history of persecution, Jews came to America with their heads down but their eyes open, finding themselves presented with unprecedented freedom and opportunity." "Still, there were limits, spoken and unspoken, which often pushed Jews into fields with a hint of "second-class-ness" to them. Among these was the comic-book industry, until then minus the breakout hit that would put the medium on the map. That phenomenon would be the superhero - specifically Superman - and the flood of others that followed, including Batman and Spider-Man." "In Disguised as Clark Kent, Danny Fingeroth explores how the creators' Jewish backgrounds helped make superheroes the most familiar popular-culture icons of all, far beyond the comic books that spawned them - on TV, in movies, in electronic media - and in our very ideas about what it means to be a hero."--Jacket."